1961 Ford Unibody - Keeping Up With The Jones

If it wasn't for a little influence from the neighbors, this truck might never have been built. When Bob and JoAnn Chapman bought the Unibody back in 1984, they were just looking for a vehicle to drive when the weather wasn't good enough for riding their motorcycles. They found the one-owner pickup on a used car lot in fairly original but worn condition. The truck was equipped with a 6-cylinder, three-on-the-tree, knobby 15-inch tires; perfect for those snowy or rainy days.

A couple years later their neighbor's son and his friend started a classic truck club. Bob and JoAnn decided to throw some support behind the boys and joined their club. They had no idea what they were getting into. What started as a few simple upgrades to make the truck more respectable has turned into 15 years of an ongoing project.

Within the first year, they repainted the truck Guards Red, added a tan velour interior, ditched the six/three-speed for a 302/auto combo, and added a set of Rocket five-spoke wheels. Before you start thinking that JoAnn is just standing idly by as the work is being done, don't bet on it. JoAnn, along with Bob's brother James, took it upon themselves to do the engine swap while Bob was at work.

The truck was starting to take shape but it needed to be brought down a little. Removing some leaf springs from the front and rear accomplished this. A couple of years later they decided it still sat too high-so a Mor-Drop 4-inch dropped axle was added.

By the late-'90s, the truck was starting to show its age--so it was treated to a new coat of Guards Red, but this time it was dressed up with a hot set of licks by Dusty Cox. The interior was redone in oatmeal-colored tweed, and the suspension was once again tweaked to bring the body even closer to the tarmac. A Fatman Mustang II frontend was installed, and a C-notch was added to the rear frame rails to make room so the 9-inch could be flipped to the top of the leaf springs. The truck's new look necessitated its fifth set of new wheels, this time going with a set of 18- and 20-inch B. Coddingtons wrapped in Goodyear rubber.

The Unibody is now part of the family and we're sure it will stay there as long as Bob and JoAnn keep coming up with new ways to improve it as the years roll by.